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“2026 will mark the fourth year that the incomparable Ned Averill-Snell has stepped into the shoes of the narrator of this amazing show. If you’ve experienced his performance, you’ll know why audiences keep demanding him to bring it back. We can’t wait to bring it to our friends out at the New Tampa Performing Arts Center!”
Every Brilliant Thing
by Duncan MacMillan with Jonny Donahoe
starring Ned Averill-Snell
directed by Emilia Sargent
Presented at The New Tampa Performing Arts Center
8550 Hunters Village Rd. Tampa, FL 33647
TWO PERFORMANCES ONLY
Friday, May 2, 2026 at 8:00pm
Saturday, May 3, 2026 at 3:00pm
Part of the RAISE THE CURTAIN ON MENTAL HEALTH AWARENESS initiative
Season Sponsors:
The Gobioff Foundation
Hillsborough County Board of County Commissioners
Andrea Graham & Geoff Simon
Hal Freedman & Willi Rudowsky
Production Sponsor:
Brain & Behavior Research Foundation
Ticketing Sponsor:
Russell Buchan
Opening Night Sponsors:
Andrea Graham & Geoff Simon
You’re six years old. Mom’s in the hospital. Dad says she’s “done something stupid.” She finds it hard to be happy. So you start to make a list of everything that’s brilliant about the world. Everything that’s worth living for.
1. Ice cream.
2. Kung Fu movies.
17. Burning things.
54. Laughing so hard you shoot milk out of your nose.
You leave it on her pillow. You know she’s read it because she’s corrected your spelling. Soon, the list will take on a life of its own. A play about depression and the lengths we will go to for those we love.
Reprising his celebrated role is multiple TTB Award-winner, Ned Averill-Snell.
“[A] heart-wrenching, hilarious play…One of the funniest plays you’ll ever see about depression—and possibly one of the funniest plays you’ll ever see, full stop…There is something tough being confronted here—the guilt of not being able to make those we love happy—and it is explored with unflinching honesty.”
—The Guardian
“What Macmillan offers, with great sensitivity behind the abundant laughs, is a child’s fierce, flawed attempt to make sense of adult unhappiness and a meditation on the shadow that a loved one’s depression casts over the lives of a family.”
—Evening Standard
“EVERY BRILLIANT THING finds a perfect balance between conveying the struggles of life, and celebrating all that is sweet in it.”
—The Independent
“[EVERY BRILLIANT THING] is sad, but it is also gloriously funny and exceptionally warm. It’s a show that spells out a little of what depression can do to people, but it also highlights the irrepressible resilience of the human spirit and the capacity to find delight in the everyday.”
—Time Out London
“…very charming…offers sentimentality without shame…guaranteed to keep your eyes brimming…[The script] balance[s] acuity and affability…with unobtrusive artistry…captivating…”
—The New York Times
Content Advisory:
This production contains discussions of depression and suicide.
If you or someone you know is in crisis or thinking about self-harm or suicide, there is help available.
Call or text 988 for the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline.
Click on a resource link below for support with mental health and suicide prevention.
Additional resources will also be available in the lobby post-show.
If you or someone you know needs help, find more information here:
